Owen, get up in French faces
OWEN FARRELL will captain England for the first time tomorrow under instruction to ruffle French feathers in Paris.
Farrell takes over from the injured Dylan Hartley in what, with another thirtysomething Mike Brown axed after the defeat by Scotland, has the look of the future for England.
Hartley has featured in every Test since Eddie Jones took over in 2015; Brown, who drops to the bench, has started 24 of the 26 internationals in that period.
While an England starting line-up without two of the main bulwarks of the Jones era and led by the team talisman is partly forced by circumstance, it nevertheless carries with it the whiff of evolution.
Now 26, Farrell has matured considerably from the hot-headed young tyro given his debut by Stuart Lancaster in 2012 but, as the Murrayfield tunnel dust-up a fortnight ago showed, the spark is still in him – and Jones wants to see it at the Stade de France.
“We want him to be in their face. That is one of the best attributes of his play. He is an aggressive, in-your-face type of player. We want him to be like that,” said Jones.
“He is no-nonsense and just gets on with it. He knows what he wants to do, he knows what the team need to do, and he is quite direct in communicating that. He expects high standards.
“Every good player just wants clear, direct messages and you are going to get that from Owen. He’s a man of few words. He’s a northerner and he gets to the point. What he says, they will understand.”
Farrell, sharing a room in the French capital with Hartley who has travelled with the team, is promising an uncomplicated leadership approach as England attempt to bounce back from the shock of defeat in Edinburgh.
“You see what type of player I am and you see a lot of that in leaders. Hopefully, you lead from the front and, first and foremost, play well,” said Farrell. “Getting your role right is a huge part of it.
“I’m sure my family are proud but for us as a team it’s all about the performance and that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
Anthony Watson is shifted to full-back, which allows for the return of Elliot Daly on the wing for the first time in this Six Nations after an ankle injury. Jones has also gone for the extra bulk of Ben Te’o over Jonathan Joseph in midfield to counteract France’s 20st juggernaut Mathieu Bastareaud, below.
“The French play fairly direct and he will enjoying getting a shot on Bastareaud early,” said Jones. “He’s a bit of an icon player for them.
“He has been built up as the guy who’s going to regenerate French rugby so it’s important that, early in the game, we let him know he’s going to have a tough day in the office. “The other key position for any French team is the No9 – he’s been playing in a dinner suit. We want to put a bit of heat on him.”
Maxime Machenaud will have Francois Trinh-Duc for company at half-back after he was recalled in place of the lumbering Lionel Beauxis as the only change to the France side who beat Italy a fortnight ago. Jones has resisted the temptation to tweak his back row after the breakdown problems against Scotland.
The pack, Jamie George’s overdue promotion aside, is retained as a whole and given a second chance to show what England forwards are about in an historically bruising affair.
“We are expecting a tough old tussle,” said Jones. “But as long as we are brutal and ruthless at the gain line, I think we’ll have too much for them.”
FRANCE: Replacements: ENGLAND:
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